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Forever Country

March 10, 2023

"Forever Country" is a 2016 mashup performed by Artists of Then, Now & Forever, a one-time gathering of 30 American country music artists. The song combines elements of three previous country hits: John Denver's "Take Me Home, Country Roads" (1971), Willie Nelson's "On the Road Again" (1979), and Dolly Parton's "I Will Always Love You" (1973). The song was recorded to commemorate the Country Music Association Awards reaching its 50th year. Originally, CMA Awards producers had wanted to record a cover of a single song; the idea to instead record a mashup came from Joseph Kahn, who directed the song's music video. The song was recorded in a span of three days in Nashville, Tennessee in June 2016 with Shane McAnally as producer, with the music video produced concurrently.

"Forever Country"
Single by Artists of Then, Now & Forever
ReleasedSeptember 16, 2016 (2016-09-16)
GenreCountry
Length4:02
LabelMCA Nashville
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)Shane McAnally

"Forever Country" was released on September 16, 2016, and the video premiered four days later on September 20 during Dancing with the Stars. All profits from the sale and streaming of the song go to music education supported by the CMA Foundation.[1]

The song debuted atop Billboard's Hot Country Songs chart, becoming the third song in history to achieve the feat and giving every artist featured on the song a number one hit.

In a rare display, the rival Academy of Country Music gave "Forever Country" and the CMA their Video of the Year Award at their 2017 ceremony.

Development

Background and development

 
Joseph Kahn conceived the idea of assembling three songs together, sung by numerous artists, after rebuffing the idea of just presenting one song.[2]

The song was recorded to honor the 50th Annual Country Music Association (CMA) Awards. It was produced by Shane McAnally and is a mashup of three existing songs: "I Will Always Love You" by Dolly Parton, "Take Me Home, Country Roads" by John Denver, and "On the Road Again" by Willie Nelson. Along with Nelson and Parton singing portions of their own songs, the song features 28 other current and veteran country acts who are all previous CMA winners; Denver died in 1997.[2] Randy Travis, who was incapacitated by a stroke in 2013, was unable to record but makes a silent cameo appearance in the music video and is credited as an artist.[3] Parton, Nelson, and Denver are all former CMA Entertainer of the Year winners.[4]

The idea for the song and its accompanying video was born at a CMA board meeting as a way to celebrate the milestone of 50 years of the CMA Awards.[4] Everyone was brainstorming about an interesting and unique way to honor the 50th anniversary."[1] The CMAs then approached Joseph Kahn – after he won the Grammy Award for Best Music Video for Taylor Swift's "Bad Blood" at the 58th Annual Grammy Awards – and solicited his opinion about whether there were any country songs which he would like to do. Kahn began to think about different possible songs but felt that the choices were too limited in terms of trying to get the entire history of country music into one song. So he pitched the CMA board the idea of doing a mash-up of three different songs, so that one would get more of a breadth of the history.[5] He told CNN, "I didn't think one song could encapsulate all of country music, so I pitched the idea of doing a mashup of a couple songs and blending them together." But Kahn was told that it would never work and the reaction was the same from whomever he approached.[6]

 
Shane McAnally produced the song.

After the idea coalesced, Shane McAnally was asked to take up the assignment to execute Kahn's idea. He was among the first people approached to take up the task, being on the CMA board partly as a result of his star-making work with Kacey Musgraves and Old Dominion. He happily took on the job,[5] but admits that he was hesitant to make a medley of the songs at first, saying that the process might work for the pop genre, but not for country, since "...we tell stories. And we can't just cut into them and take a piece."[7] He admitted that mashing together a bunch of country classics was "a very scary process"[1] and although Kahn wanted three songs, he envisioned one song being the focus.[8]

The two of them started with songs in mind that had the same tempo and same chord progressions.[5] During the song searching process, a total of 40 songs were considered as potential contenders,[8] most of which were previous CMA Song of the Year winners,[9] or at least been nominated, and songs with universal themes that could sound like a love song to the country genre.[10] Originally, Kahn wanted to incorporate songs including "Gentle on My Mind" by Glen Campbell and "The Gambler" by Kenny Rogers. But everybody would keep coming back to "I Will Always Love You" by Dolly Parton, saying that it was a quintessential song in the country genre.[5][9]

Kahn kept rebuffing this suggestion since he felt his choices of music would not blend together with the song. He presented a demo of a second medley he made, which everyone loved, but nevertheless they still requested that he incorporate "I Will Always Love You." Kahn did not object to the idea but did not see how a ballad could be placed on the same track as uptempo songs.[5] McAnally similarly did not see how "I Will Always Love You" could fit in, since it was a song addressed to one person.[7]

Then one day, as co-arranger Josh Osborne and Kahn were playing around in the latter's office, the two realized that one could sing the verses of "I Will Always Love You" in the same tempo as "Take Me Home, Country Roads" and blend them without changing the chord structure, and it worked. Kahn gave credit to those people who were so persistent in incorporating the song; without them, he said, he would have never tried it.[5] McAnally changed his mind as well, feeling that when "I Will Always Love You" – which he considers "sacred" – is sung over "Take Me Home, Country Roads", it takes on a new life, as a sort of love song to country music itself.[9][10] McAnally was worried about approaching Parton to sing on the recording, as he thought that she might think that including "I Will Always Love You" in a medley would compromise the integrity of the song.[7]

Nelson's "On the Road Again," which is an ode to the life of a traveling musician, was considered a natural addition to the mix, in part because of the line "The life I love is making music with my friends", which kept coming into the mind of McAnally as he was thinking of material to use.[11]

Selection process and recording

 
One of the three main artists whose songs were featured, John Denver.

Initially, it was unknown how many stars would participate. To narrow the list down, only previous CMA winners were considered for the parts.[9] Artists like Miranda Lambert, Luke Bryan, and Brad Paisley who came in early had to cover a lot of ground, since it was not known if every line would be covered. Lambert for one would record almost the entire "Take Me Home, Country Roads" and pieces of "On the Road Again". McAnally kept saying, "I need your voice, if I don't get all these singers, to cover these patches."[5] In an interview with Billboard magazine, McAnally said that "some of those people were really generous with their time, singing a lot more than what ended up on the track. As we neared the finish line, it came down to some folks literally having just one line left they could sing, and it was like, "Please, God, just let this work with their voice.""[5] Most of the artists sang a line or two, while Little Big Town appeared the most.[12] Not every artist contacted was able to make it into the project. There were a handful of people with whom the team could not get their schedules to work.[9]

The recording session took place in Nashville a few days before the CMA Music Festival in June 2016. Most of the artists recorded their parts as they came through Nashville on tour stopovers. And by the time it was scheduled to shoot the video two days leading up to the CMT Awards and CMA Festival, nearly everyone was in town to stop by the soundstage, although for George Strait, a couple of last-minute vocals were recorded the same day the singer shot a video cameo.[5] Nearly all artists who were approached made it into the finished product, although a few artists including Kenny Chesney, Billy Currington, Zac Brown Band, Thomas Rhett, Chris Young, Toby Keith, and Florida Georgia Line either could not do the vocal or the video. Randy Travis was the only one who appears only in the video due to health problems which have taken him out of performing; Travis would not return to singing publicly until October of that year, and even then only on a very limited basis.[13] Kahn said that "even though he's not singing, he's connecting."[5]

 
 
Brad Paisley (left) and Dolly Parton (right) were strategically chosen to begin and end the song.

McAnally wanted Paisley, a native of West Virginia, to open the song with Denver's "Take Me Home, Country Roads," and he wanted Carrie Underwood specifically to open Dolly Parton's "I Will Always Love You."[14] Parton, who is known to arrive early for her appointments, arrived really early on her recording day, even before producer McAnally had arrived. During the recording session, McAnally became very nervous and told Parton: "I don't know how I am supposed to direct you singing 'I Will Always Love You,' but I am going to do my best."[10] Kahn similarly stated, "I have literally worked with everybody but Dolly Parton made me nervous."[10]

While most of the artists who sang the same line together were pre-planned, Lambert's and Bryan's duet happened accidentally.[14] Underwood was skeptical when she first heard the idea of the mashup and questioned how it would work since three very different songs were incorporated. She later said that she felt honored to be a part of it, and to be singing parts on "I Will Always Love You", which she actually performs on her tours recurrently.[4] Miranda Lambert said that she felt the same way but later commented saying, "It's really cool that almost everybody that's part of the project had a duet together or performed together or toured together or something as a combo."[15] When Blake Shelton received the call to be a part of the project, he was so enthusiastic he did not even ask what song it was.[15] Keith Urban, who was nominated for Entertainer of the Year in 2016, explained why the song is timeless and resonates to so many people: "I've played 'Take Me Home, Country Roads' many, many times. As geographic as the song is in so many places, it's also incredibly universal. I think that's why songs like that transcend everything, because it's about home and very universal, human things.”[4]

Forever Country musicians

 
Willie Nelson was one of the veteran artists to make an appearance in the song.
 
Lady A (pictured) were one of five bands to be featured, along with Alabama, Rascal Flatts, Brooks and Dunn , and Little Big Town.
 
Carrie Underwood opened the finale part of the song with "I Will Always Love You".

Artists in order of their appearance:

Release and reception

The song was released on September 16, 2016, to radio stations, streaming services, and digital retailers at 8:30 AM ET across the United States and in several key international markets. It was made available at all digital retail and streaming outlet partners simultaneously.[16][17] Universal Music Group partnered with CMA to market and distribute the track worldwide. CMA profits from the sales and streaming of "Forever Country" will benefit music education causes through the CMA Foundation.[16]

West Virginians were effusive when they heard the results. Governor Earl Ray Tomblin expressed his enthusiasm on Twitter saying, ""Forever Country" – a great new take on an iconic West Virginia song – is making West Virginians everywhere swell with pride."[18]

Chart performance

Forever Country was released to country radio on September 16, 2016 via Universal Music Group Nashville's MCA Nashville branch. It debuted at number one on the US Hot Country Songs chart on October 8, 2016, becoming only the third song to ever debut atop the chart since Hot Country Songs began as a multi-metric chart in October 1958 ("More Than a Memory" (2007) by Garth Brooks and "My Baby's Got a Smile on Her Face" (2015) by Craig Wayne Boyd).[17][19] The single sold 93,000 downloads and was streamed 5.7 million times in its first week.[17] It also debuted atop the Country Digital Song Sales and Country Streaming Songs charts.[17] The song went on to spend a second week at number one on the Hot Country Songs and Country Digital Song Sales charts, although it descended to number two on Country Streaming Songs, with a 34% drop to 61,000 sold and streaming down 38% percent to 3.5 million.[20] As of March 2020, the single has sold 454,000 copies in the US.[21] On May 15, 2017, the single was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), for combined sales and streaming of over 500,000 units in the United States.[22]

On the US Billboard Hot 100 chart, the song debuted at number 21 on the chart dated for the week ending October 8, 2016,[17] becoming the week's top new entry on the Hot 100.[23]

The song debuted at number 39 on the Country Airplay chart for the week ending October 1, 2016, from less than three full days of airplay (September 16–18).[24] It moved up to No. 33 on October 8 following 5.4 million streams in its full week.[17]

Following the release of "Forever Country", the three original songs that were included saw an upsurge in their sales: "On the Road Again" increased by 181% to 5,000 downloads and re-entered at number 38 on Country Digital Song Sales; "Take Me Home, Country Roads" rose 126% and "I Will Always Love You" surged 314% (both to approximately 2,000 downloads each).[17]

Music video

 
Randy Travis was the only artist who made a non-singing appearance in the video. A debilitating stroke Travis suffered in 2013 left him unable to participate in the song's recording.
 
Faith Hill was the only other artist, besides Willie Nelson, who had previously worked with Kahn when he directed the video clip for her 2000 single, "The Way You Love Me".

Joseph Kahn directed the song's accompanying music video, which serves as a promotional teaser for the 50th CMA Awards ceremony and features all thirty artists involved performing in front of a green screen on which "graphics of railroad tracks transform into major cities and back again."[25] Filming took place in Nashville, Tennessee for three days in June 2016 during the CMA Music Festival.[14] It marked the fourth time he directed a country music video after Willie Nelson's "Afraid" and “December Day” in 1994[2] and Faith Hill's "The Way You Love Me" in 2000 and the director's most star-studded video since Taylor Swift's "Bad Blood" which featured 15 artists.[5] Houston-raised Kahn grew up listening to country music.[8] McAnally said it was "an act of God" that everyone could make it to the recording and video shoot.[9] The video was promoted as "the biggest video in country music history."[2]

Kahn said he does not have a predilection for special effects-driven music videos and generally hates green-screen videos. He wanted the video to feel stylized but also organic, like the singers were actually in the places portrayed. It was a challenge due to time constraints. Because the song itself had three different melodies, he came up with the idea of layering the locations, where "you see them constructing and deconstructing and each leading naturally to the next." Kahn had to pre-visualize everything – where everyone was standing, how he was going to light it, how it would blend – and film it with plates. By the time the artists arrived to shoot their parts, everything was already pre-edited.[5] Due to scheduling issues, he had to shoot all the artists separately and stitch them together at the end.[10] Kahn said "the challenge is actually on different levels." He had to get all the artists represented in a very short period of time. He tried to avoid overdoing the visuals so they wouldn't get in the way of the artists; he wanted the artists to be the prime focus and not the visual effects.[2] He said the next sociological and artistic challenge was melding the authenticity of old country with new country, which sounds like Top 40 pop. Both are very different and it was difficult to blend them together in a video and make everything feel contemporary and classic at the same time.[2]

The video was expensive, like most of Kahn's previous works. When they presented the demo of the song and the budget to the board members, it was only after hearing the song that the members approved financing the project. McAnally admitted that at one point he grew wary and anxious due to the number of celebrities involved and the heft of the pricey budget.[9] George Strait recorded his part and shot the video on the same day, which was the last day of production. He went to the recording studio in the morning, and then drove to the warehouse where some of the other artists were filming their shoots. McAnally recalls, "Literally as he's driving from the studio to the warehouse, we're dropping his voice in and sending a track over for him to (lip-synch) to."[5]

 
Mesa Arch in Canyonlands National Park, Utah, one of the many locations used in the video.

The video begins with Paisley gazing out a window as he sings the song's opening lyrics and closes with Parton singing in a field with the rest of the artists. In between, many country music stars can be seen singing, walking, and looking out across digitally-imposed landscapes like fields, farms, backroads, railroad tracks, famous locales like Nashville's Lower Broadway and international landmarks, including the Eiffel Tower, London and the Mesa Arch.[14] According to CMA senior vice president of marketing and strategic partnerships Damon Whiteside, "the whole concept of the video is really about starting in Nashville and then really taking a tour around the world just to showcase that country music is everywhere; it's global."[26]

On September 19, 2016, select members of the press, industry, and CMA board members got an exclusive first look at the video at Nashville's Belcourt Theatre. Director Joseph Kahn, producer Shane McAnally, and CMA board member Karen Fairchild (of Little Big Town) were present to share their experiences throughout the process, with a short panel led by Country Countdown USA host Lon Helton. Randy Travis, who was in attendance, received a round of applause for his participation and Fairchild thanked him for being a part of the project.[8] A 90-second video premiered during ABC's Dancing With the Stars on September 20, after which viewers were redirected to www.forevercountry50.com to watch the full video.[27][28]

Billboard said that the video contains "more special-effects scenarios in these four minutes as [sic] anything short of an Avatar sequel, albeit with churches, forests, and Ryman Auditorium standing in for other planets."[5]

On April 2, 2017, the video won the 2016 ACM Award for "Video of the Year".[29]

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (2016) Peak
position
Australia (ARIA)[30] 26
Canada (Canadian Hot 100)[31] 25
Canada Country (Billboard)[32] 34
New Zealand Heatseekers (Recorded Music NZ)[33] 1
Scotland (OCC)[34] 29
UK Downloads (Official Charts Company)[35] 58
US Billboard Hot 100[17] 21
US Country Airplay (Billboard)[36] 32
US Hot Country Songs (Billboard)[17] 1

Year-end charts

Chart (2016) Position
US Hot Country Songs (Billboard)[37] 75

Certifications and sales

Region Certification Certified units/sales
United States (RIAA)[22] Gold 454,000[21]

References

  1. ^ a b c Katie Scott. "'Forever Country' video features 30 top country artists". Global News. Retrieved September 24, 2016.
  2. ^ a b c d e f Randy Lewis (September 20, 2016). "Country stars amass in 'Forever Country' video for 50th CMA Awards". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved September 25, 2016.
  3. ^ Stutz, Colin (September 16, 2016). "CMA's 'Forever Country' Song Features Dolly Parton, Willie Nelson & 28 More Country Superstars: Listen". Billboard. Retrieved 21 September 2016.
  4. ^ a b c d Brittany Hodak (September 21, 2016). "Is This The Most Epic Country Music Video Of All Time?". Forbes. Retrieved September 24, 2016.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Chris Willman (September 21, 2016). "'Forever Country': Inside Story of How Epic Mash-Up Song & Video Developed". Billboard. Retrieved September 24, 2016.
  6. ^ Chloe Melas (September 21, 2016). "Country Music's biggest names team up for 'Forever Country' music video". CNN. Retrieved September 24, 2016.
  7. ^ a b c Finan, Eileen (September 16, 2016). "The Story Behind Country Music's Epic Mash-Up! Plus: Hear Blake, Carrie, Miranda and 36 Other Stars Sing 'Forever Country'". People. Retrieved 21 September 2016.
  8. ^ a b c d Annue Reuter (September 20, 2016). "Randy Travis, Karen Fairchild on Hand for 'Forever Country' First Look". Taste of Country. Retrieved September 24, 2016.
  9. ^ a b c d e f g Jim Casey (September 21, 2016). "5 Questions With "Forever Country" Producer Shane McAnally, Who Reveals What Other Songs Were in Contention for the Mashup". Nash Country Daily. Retrieved September 25, 2016.
  10. ^ a b c d e Kristen M. Hall (September 21, 2016). . The Charlotte Observer. Archived from the original on September 27, 2016. Retrieved September 25, 2016.
  11. ^ Eileen Finan (September 16, 2016). "The story behind country music's epic mashup, 'Forever Country'". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved September 25, 2016.
  12. ^ Billy Dukes (September 22, 2016). "Which Artists Sing Which Part of 'Forever Country'". Taste of Country. Retrieved September 25, 2016.
  13. ^ "Randy Travis stuns crowd with 'Amazing Grace' rendition at hall of fame induction". Fox News. 17 October 2016.
  14. ^ a b c d Anna Reuter (September 20, 2016). "Country All-Stars Unite for Epic 'Forever Country' Video". Taste of Country. Retrieved September 24, 2016.
  15. ^ a b Mike Vulpo (September 21, 2016). "Blake Shelton and Miranda Lambert Reunite on Star-Studded "Forever Country" Single". E! News. Retrieved September 24, 2016.
  16. ^ a b "CMA ANNOUNCES THE LIST OF 30 CMA AWARD-WINNING ACTS IN FOREVER COUNTRY, CMA'S HISTORIC MUSIC VIDEO PROJECT". September 16, 2016. Retrieved September 25, 2016.
  17. ^ a b c d e f g h i Gary Trust (September 26, 2016). . Billboard. Archived from the original on September 27, 2016. Retrieved September 27, 2016.
  18. ^ Brad McElhinny in (September 24, 2016). "'Forever Country' and its W.Va. connections". West Virginia MetroNews. Retrieved September 25, 2016.
  19. ^ Melinda Newman (September 26, 2016). "'Forever Country,' Starring Dolly Parton, Luke Bryan, Carrie Underwood, Makes Chart History". Forbes. Retrieved September 27, 2016.
  20. ^ Jim Asker (October 4, 2016). "Luke Bryan and Billy Currington Reap New No. 1s on Country Charts". Billboard. Retrieved October 5, 2016.
  21. ^ a b Bjorke, Matt (March 4, 2020). "Top 30 Digital Country Singles Sales Chart: March 2, 2020". Rough Stock. Retrieved March 14, 2020.
  22. ^ a b "American single certifications – Artists Of Then, Now & Forever – Forever Country". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved June 19, 2017.
  23. ^ Paul Grein (September 27, 2016). "Chart Watch: 'Forever Country' Is Off to a Fast Start". Yahoo! Music. Retrieved September 27, 2016.
  24. ^ "Billboard Country Update" (PDF). Billboard. September 19, 2016. pp. 4, 7. Retrieved September 21, 2016.
  25. ^ Dukes, Billy (September 20, 2016). "Go Behind the Scenes of the Stunning 'Forever Country' Music Video". Taste of Country. Retrieved 21 September 2016.
  26. ^ Jesse Knutson (September 23, 2016). "Nashville Shines In CMA's "Forever Country" Music Video". NewsChannel5. Retrieved September 25, 2016.
  27. ^ Dunkerley, Beville (September 16, 2016). "'Forever Country': Hear 30 Stars Sing Epic Willie, Dolly, Denver Medley". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 21 September 2016.
  28. ^ Billboard Staff (September 20, 2016). "Watch 'Forever Country' Gather Country's Best & Brightest for All-Star Music Video". Billboard. Retrieved September 24, 2016.
  29. ^ Dresdale, Andrea (April 3, 2017). "52nd ACM Awards: Aldean wins entertainer of the year; Miranda sets female vocalist record". ABC News. Retrieved April 3, 2017.
  30. ^ "ARIA Report (Issue #1338)" ARIA Top 100 Singles. National Library of Australia. Retrieved June 19, 2017.
  31. ^ . Billboard. October 8, 2016. Archived from the original on February 13, 2018. Retrieved January 29, 2020.
  32. ^ . Billboard. November 12, 2016. Archived from the original on January 15, 2020. Retrieved January 29, 2020.
  33. ^ "NZ Heatseekers Singles Chart". Recorded Music NZ. October 3, 2016. Retrieved November 5, 2016.
  34. ^ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved October 1, 2016.
  35. ^ "Official Singles Downloads Chart Top 100" (23 September 2016 - 29 September 2016). Official Charts Company. Retrieved 2 October 2016.
  36. ^ . Billboard. October 15, 2016. Archived from the original on October 23, 2018. Retrieved January 29, 2020.
  37. ^ "Hot Country Songs – Year-End 2016". Billboard. Retrieved December 28, 2019.

External links

March 10, 2023
forever, country, 2016, mashup, performed, artists, then, forever, time, gathering, american, country, music, artists, song, combines, elements, three, previous, country, hits, john, denver, take, home, country, roads, 1971, willie, nelson, road, again, 1979, . Forever Country is a 2016 mashup performed by Artists of Then Now amp Forever a one time gathering of 30 American country music artists The song combines elements of three previous country hits John Denver s Take Me Home Country Roads 1971 Willie Nelson s On the Road Again 1979 and Dolly Parton s I Will Always Love You 1973 The song was recorded to commemorate the Country Music Association Awards reaching its 50th year Originally CMA Awards producers had wanted to record a cover of a single song the idea to instead record a mashup came from Joseph Kahn who directed the song s music video The song was recorded in a span of three days in Nashville Tennessee in June 2016 with Shane McAnally as producer with the music video produced concurrently Forever Country Single by Artists of Then Now amp ForeverReleasedSeptember 16 2016 2016 09 16 GenreCountryLength4 02LabelMCA NashvilleSongwriter s Bill DanoffTaffy NivertJohn Denver Take Me Home Country Roads Willie Nelson On the Road Again Dolly Parton I Will Always Love You Producer s Shane McAnally Forever Country was released on September 16 2016 and the video premiered four days later on September 20 during Dancing with the Stars All profits from the sale and streaming of the song go to music education supported by the CMA Foundation 1 The song debuted atop Billboard s Hot Country Songs chart becoming the third song in history to achieve the feat and giving every artist featured on the song a number one hit In a rare display the rival Academy of Country Music gave Forever Country and the CMA their Video of the Year Award at their 2017 ceremony Contents 1 Development 1 1 Background and development 1 2 Selection process and recording 2 Forever Country musicians 3 Release and reception 4 Chart performance 5 Music video 6 Charts 6 1 Weekly charts 6 2 Year end charts 7 Certifications and sales 8 References 9 External linksDevelopment EditBackground and development Edit Joseph Kahn conceived the idea of assembling three songs together sung by numerous artists after rebuffing the idea of just presenting one song 2 The song was recorded to honor the 50th Annual Country Music Association CMA Awards It was produced by Shane McAnally and is a mashup of three existing songs I Will Always Love You by Dolly Parton Take Me Home Country Roads by John Denver and On the Road Again by Willie Nelson Along with Nelson and Parton singing portions of their own songs the song features 28 other current and veteran country acts who are all previous CMA winners Denver died in 1997 2 Randy Travis who was incapacitated by a stroke in 2013 was unable to record but makes a silent cameo appearance in the music video and is credited as an artist 3 Parton Nelson and Denver are all former CMA Entertainer of the Year winners 4 The idea for the song and its accompanying video was born at a CMA board meeting as a way to celebrate the milestone of 50 years of the CMA Awards 4 Everyone was brainstorming about an interesting and unique way to honor the 50th anniversary 1 The CMAs then approached Joseph Kahn after he won the Grammy Award for Best Music Video for Taylor Swift s Bad Blood at the 58th Annual Grammy Awards and solicited his opinion about whether there were any country songs which he would like to do Kahn began to think about different possible songs but felt that the choices were too limited in terms of trying to get the entire history of country music into one song So he pitched the CMA board the idea of doing a mash up of three different songs so that one would get more of a breadth of the history 5 He told CNN I didn t think one song could encapsulate all of country music so I pitched the idea of doing a mashup of a couple songs and blending them together But Kahn was told that it would never work and the reaction was the same from whomever he approached 6 Shane McAnally produced the song After the idea coalesced Shane McAnally was asked to take up the assignment to execute Kahn s idea He was among the first people approached to take up the task being on the CMA board partly as a result of his star making work with Kacey Musgraves and Old Dominion He happily took on the job 5 but admits that he was hesitant to make a medley of the songs at first saying that the process might work for the pop genre but not for country since we tell stories And we can t just cut into them and take a piece 7 He admitted that mashing together a bunch of country classics was a very scary process 1 and although Kahn wanted three songs he envisioned one song being the focus 8 The two of them started with songs in mind that had the same tempo and same chord progressions 5 During the song searching process a total of 40 songs were considered as potential contenders 8 most of which were previous CMA Song of the Year winners 9 or at least been nominated and songs with universal themes that could sound like a love song to the country genre 10 Originally Kahn wanted to incorporate songs including Gentle on My Mind by Glen Campbell and The Gambler by Kenny Rogers But everybody would keep coming back to I Will Always Love You by Dolly Parton saying that it was a quintessential song in the country genre 5 9 Kahn kept rebuffing this suggestion since he felt his choices of music would not blend together with the song He presented a demo of a second medley he made which everyone loved but nevertheless they still requested that he incorporate I Will Always Love You Kahn did not object to the idea but did not see how a ballad could be placed on the same track as uptempo songs 5 McAnally similarly did not see how I Will Always Love You could fit in since it was a song addressed to one person 7 Then one day as co arranger Josh Osborne and Kahn were playing around in the latter s office the two realized that one could sing the verses of I Will Always Love You in the same tempo as Take Me Home Country Roads and blend them without changing the chord structure and it worked Kahn gave credit to those people who were so persistent in incorporating the song without them he said he would have never tried it 5 McAnally changed his mind as well feeling that when I Will Always Love You which he considers sacred is sung over Take Me Home Country Roads it takes on a new life as a sort of love song to country music itself 9 10 McAnally was worried about approaching Parton to sing on the recording as he thought that she might think that including I Will Always Love You in a medley would compromise the integrity of the song 7 Nelson s On the Road Again which is an ode to the life of a traveling musician was considered a natural addition to the mix in part because of the line The life I love is making music with my friends which kept coming into the mind of McAnally as he was thinking of material to use 11 Selection process and recording Edit One of the three main artists whose songs were featured John Denver Initially it was unknown how many stars would participate To narrow the list down only previous CMA winners were considered for the parts 9 Artists like Miranda Lambert Luke Bryan and Brad Paisley who came in early had to cover a lot of ground since it was not known if every line would be covered Lambert for one would record almost the entire Take Me Home Country Roads and pieces of On the Road Again McAnally kept saying I need your voice if I don t get all these singers to cover these patches 5 In an interview with Billboard magazine McAnally said that some of those people were really generous with their time singing a lot more than what ended up on the track As we neared the finish line it came down to some folks literally having just one line left they could sing and it was like Please God just let this work with their voice 5 Most of the artists sang a line or two while Little Big Town appeared the most 12 Not every artist contacted was able to make it into the project There were a handful of people with whom the team could not get their schedules to work 9 The recording session took place in Nashville a few days before the CMA Music Festival in June 2016 Most of the artists recorded their parts as they came through Nashville on tour stopovers And by the time it was scheduled to shoot the video two days leading up to the CMT Awards and CMA Festival nearly everyone was in town to stop by the soundstage although for George Strait a couple of last minute vocals were recorded the same day the singer shot a video cameo 5 Nearly all artists who were approached made it into the finished product although a few artists including Kenny Chesney Billy Currington Zac Brown Band Thomas Rhett Chris Young Toby Keith and Florida Georgia Line either could not do the vocal or the video Randy Travis was the only one who appears only in the video due to health problems which have taken him out of performing Travis would not return to singing publicly until October of that year and even then only on a very limited basis 13 Kahn said that even though he s not singing he s connecting 5 Brad Paisley left and Dolly Parton right were strategically chosen to begin and end the song McAnally wanted Paisley a native of West Virginia to open the song with Denver s Take Me Home Country Roads and he wanted Carrie Underwood specifically to open Dolly Parton s I Will Always Love You 14 Parton who is known to arrive early for her appointments arrived really early on her recording day even before producer McAnally had arrived During the recording session McAnally became very nervous and told Parton I don t know how I am supposed to direct you singing I Will Always Love You but I am going to do my best 10 Kahn similarly stated I have literally worked with everybody but Dolly Parton made me nervous 10 While most of the artists who sang the same line together were pre planned Lambert s and Bryan s duet happened accidentally 14 Underwood was skeptical when she first heard the idea of the mashup and questioned how it would work since three very different songs were incorporated She later said that she felt honored to be a part of it and to be singing parts on I Will Always Love You which she actually performs on her tours recurrently 4 Miranda Lambert said that she felt the same way but later commented saying It s really cool that almost everybody that s part of the project had a duet together or performed together or toured together or something as a combo 15 When Blake Shelton received the call to be a part of the project he was so enthusiastic he did not even ask what song it was 15 Keith Urban who was nominated for Entertainer of the Year in 2016 explained why the song is timeless and resonates to so many people I ve played Take Me Home Country Roads many many times As geographic as the song is in so many places it s also incredibly universal I think that s why songs like that transcend everything because it s about home and very universal human things 4 Forever Country musicians Edit Willie Nelson was one of the veteran artists to make an appearance in the song Lady A pictured were one of five bands to be featured along with Alabama Rascal Flatts Brooks and Dunn and Little Big Town Carrie Underwood opened the finale part of the song with I Will Always Love You Artists in order of their appearance Brad Paisley Keith Urban Tim McGraw Faith Hill Little Big Town Luke Bryan Miranda Lambert Randy Travis Blake Shelton George Strait Kacey Musgraves Eric Church Ronnie Milsap Charley Pride Dierks Bentley Trisha Yearwood Lady A Darius Rucker Martina McBride Jason Aldean Rascal Flatts Willie Nelson Brooks amp Dunn Alabama Brett Eldredge Reba McEntire Alan Jackson Vince Gill Carrie Underwood Dolly PartonRelease and reception EditThe song was released on September 16 2016 to radio stations streaming services and digital retailers at 8 30 AM ET across the United States and in several key international markets It was made available at all digital retail and streaming outlet partners simultaneously 16 17 Universal Music Group partnered with CMA to market and distribute the track worldwide CMA profits from the sales and streaming of Forever Country will benefit music education causes through the CMA Foundation 16 West Virginians were effusive when they heard the results Governor Earl Ray Tomblin expressed his enthusiasm on Twitter saying Forever Country a great new take on an iconic West Virginia song is making West Virginians everywhere swell with pride 18 Chart performance EditForever Country was released to country radio on September 16 2016 via Universal Music Group Nashville s MCA Nashville branch It debuted at number one on the US Hot Country Songs chart on October 8 2016 becoming only the third song to ever debut atop the chart since Hot Country Songs began as a multi metric chart in October 1958 More Than a Memory 2007 by Garth Brooks and My Baby s Got a Smile on Her Face 2015 by Craig Wayne Boyd 17 19 The single sold 93 000 downloads and was streamed 5 7 million times in its first week 17 It also debuted atop the Country Digital Song Sales and Country Streaming Songs charts 17 The song went on to spend a second week at number one on the Hot Country Songs and Country Digital Song Sales charts although it descended to number two on Country Streaming Songs with a 34 drop to 61 000 sold and streaming down 38 percent to 3 5 million 20 As of March 2020 the single has sold 454 000 copies in the US 21 On May 15 2017 the single was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America RIAA for combined sales and streaming of over 500 000 units in the United States 22 On the US Billboard Hot 100 chart the song debuted at number 21 on the chart dated for the week ending October 8 2016 17 becoming the week s top new entry on the Hot 100 23 The song debuted at number 39 on the Country Airplay chart for the week ending October 1 2016 from less than three full days of airplay September 16 18 24 It moved up to No 33 on October 8 following 5 4 million streams in its full week 17 Following the release of Forever Country the three original songs that were included saw an upsurge in their sales On the Road Again increased by 181 to 5 000 downloads and re entered at number 38 on Country Digital Song Sales Take Me Home Country Roads rose 126 and I Will Always Love You surged 314 both to approximately 2 000 downloads each 17 Music video Edit Randy Travis was the only artist who made a non singing appearance in the video A debilitating stroke Travis suffered in 2013 left him unable to participate in the song s recording Faith Hill was the only other artist besides Willie Nelson who had previously worked with Kahn when he directed the video clip for her 2000 single The Way You Love Me Joseph Kahn directed the song s accompanying music video which serves as a promotional teaser for the 50th CMA Awards ceremony and features all thirty artists involved performing in front of a green screen on which graphics of railroad tracks transform into major cities and back again 25 Filming took place in Nashville Tennessee for three days in June 2016 during the CMA Music Festival 14 It marked the fourth time he directed a country music video after Willie Nelson s Afraid and December Day in 1994 2 and Faith Hill s The Way You Love Me in 2000 and the director s most star studded video since Taylor Swift s Bad Blood which featured 15 artists 5 Houston raised Kahn grew up listening to country music 8 McAnally said it was an act of God that everyone could make it to the recording and video shoot 9 The video was promoted as the biggest video in country music history 2 Kahn said he does not have a predilection for special effects driven music videos and generally hates green screen videos He wanted the video to feel stylized but also organic like the singers were actually in the places portrayed It was a challenge due to time constraints Because the song itself had three different melodies he came up with the idea of layering the locations where you see them constructing and deconstructing and each leading naturally to the next Kahn had to pre visualize everything where everyone was standing how he was going to light it how it would blend and film it with plates By the time the artists arrived to shoot their parts everything was already pre edited 5 Due to scheduling issues he had to shoot all the artists separately and stitch them together at the end 10 Kahn said the challenge is actually on different levels He had to get all the artists represented in a very short period of time He tried to avoid overdoing the visuals so they wouldn t get in the way of the artists he wanted the artists to be the prime focus and not the visual effects 2 He said the next sociological and artistic challenge was melding the authenticity of old country with new country which sounds like Top 40 pop Both are very different and it was difficult to blend them together in a video and make everything feel contemporary and classic at the same time 2 The video was expensive like most of Kahn s previous works When they presented the demo of the song and the budget to the board members it was only after hearing the song that the members approved financing the project McAnally admitted that at one point he grew wary and anxious due to the number of celebrities involved and the heft of the pricey budget 9 George Strait recorded his part and shot the video on the same day which was the last day of production He went to the recording studio in the morning and then drove to the warehouse where some of the other artists were filming their shoots McAnally recalls Literally as he s driving from the studio to the warehouse we re dropping his voice in and sending a track over for him to lip synch to 5 Mesa Arch in Canyonlands National Park Utah one of the many locations used in the video The video begins with Paisley gazing out a window as he sings the song s opening lyrics and closes with Parton singing in a field with the rest of the artists In between many country music stars can be seen singing walking and looking out across digitally imposed landscapes like fields farms backroads railroad tracks famous locales like Nashville s Lower Broadway and international landmarks including the Eiffel Tower London and the Mesa Arch 14 According to CMA senior vice president of marketing and strategic partnerships Damon Whiteside the whole concept of the video is really about starting in Nashville and then really taking a tour around the world just to showcase that country music is everywhere it s global 26 On September 19 2016 select members of the press industry and CMA board members got an exclusive first look at the video at Nashville s Belcourt Theatre Director Joseph Kahn producer Shane McAnally and CMA board member Karen Fairchild of Little Big Town were present to share their experiences throughout the process with a short panel led by Country Countdown USA host Lon Helton Randy Travis who was in attendance received a round of applause for his participation and Fairchild thanked him for being a part of the project 8 A 90 second video premiered during ABC s Dancing With the Stars on September 20 after which viewers were redirected to www forevercountry50 com to watch the full video 27 28 Billboard said that the video contains more special effects scenarios in these four minutes as sic anything short of an Avatar sequel albeit with churches forests and Ryman Auditorium standing in for other planets 5 On April 2 2017 the video won the 2016 ACM Award for Video of the Year 29 Charts EditWeekly charts Edit Chart 2016 Peak positionAustralia ARIA 30 26Canada Canadian Hot 100 31 25Canada Country Billboard 32 34New Zealand Heatseekers Recorded Music NZ 33 1Scotland OCC 34 29UK Downloads Official Charts Company 35 58US Billboard Hot 100 17 21US Country Airplay Billboard 36 32US Hot Country Songs Billboard 17 1Year end charts Edit Chart 2016 PositionUS Hot Country Songs Billboard 37 75Certifications and sales EditRegion Certification Certified units salesUnited States RIAA 22 Gold 454 000 21 References Edit a b c Katie Scott Forever Country video features 30 top country artists Global News Retrieved September 24 2016 a b c d e f Randy Lewis September 20 2016 Country stars amass in Forever Country video for 50th CMA Awards Los Angeles Times Retrieved September 25 2016 Stutz Colin September 16 2016 CMA s Forever Country Song Features Dolly Parton Willie Nelson amp 28 More Country Superstars Listen Billboard Retrieved 21 September 2016 a b c d Brittany Hodak September 21 2016 Is This The Most Epic Country Music Video Of All Time Forbes Retrieved September 24 2016 a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Chris Willman September 21 2016 Forever Country Inside Story of How Epic Mash Up Song amp Video Developed Billboard Retrieved September 24 2016 Chloe Melas September 21 2016 Country Music s biggest names team up for Forever Country music video CNN Retrieved September 24 2016 a b c Finan Eileen September 16 2016 The Story Behind Country Music s Epic Mash Up Plus Hear Blake Carrie Miranda and 36 Other Stars Sing Forever Country People Retrieved 21 September 2016 a b c d Annue Reuter September 20 2016 Randy Travis Karen Fairchild on Hand for Forever Country First Look Taste of Country Retrieved September 24 2016 a b c d e f g Jim Casey September 21 2016 5 Questions With Forever Country Producer Shane McAnally Who Reveals What Other Songs Were in Contention for the Mashup Nash Country Daily Retrieved September 25 2016 a b c d e Kristen M Hall September 21 2016 Country song mashup celebrates CMA s 50th anniversary The Charlotte Observer Archived from the original on September 27 2016 Retrieved September 25 2016 Eileen Finan September 16 2016 The story behind country music s epic mashup Forever Country Entertainment Weekly Retrieved September 25 2016 Billy Dukes September 22 2016 Which Artists Sing Which Part of Forever Country Taste of Country Retrieved September 25 2016 Randy Travis stuns crowd with Amazing Grace rendition at hall of fame induction Fox News 17 October 2016 a b c d Anna Reuter September 20 2016 Country All Stars Unite for Epic Forever Country Video Taste of Country Retrieved September 24 2016 a b Mike Vulpo September 21 2016 Blake Shelton and Miranda Lambert Reunite on Star Studded Forever Country Single E News Retrieved September 24 2016 a b CMA ANNOUNCES THE LIST OF 30 CMA AWARD WINNING ACTS IN FOREVER COUNTRY CMA S HISTORIC MUSIC VIDEO PROJECT September 16 2016 Retrieved September 25 2016 a b c d e f g h i Gary Trust September 26 2016 Forever Country Debuts at No 1 on Hot Country Songs Billboard Archived from the original on September 27 2016 Retrieved September 27 2016 Brad McElhinny in September 24 2016 Forever Country and its W Va connections West Virginia MetroNews Retrieved September 25 2016 Melinda Newman September 26 2016 Forever Country Starring Dolly Parton Luke Bryan Carrie Underwood Makes Chart History Forbes Retrieved September 27 2016 Jim Asker October 4 2016 Luke Bryan and Billy Currington Reap New No 1s on Country Charts Billboard Retrieved October 5 2016 a b Bjorke Matt March 4 2020 Top 30 Digital Country Singles Sales Chart March 2 2020 Rough Stock Retrieved March 14 2020 a b American single certifications Artists Of Then Now amp Forever Forever Country Recording Industry Association of America Retrieved June 19 2017 Paul Grein September 27 2016 Chart Watch Forever Country Is Off to a Fast Start Yahoo Music Retrieved September 27 2016 Billboard Country Update PDF Billboard September 19 2016 pp 4 7 Retrieved September 21 2016 Dukes Billy September 20 2016 Go Behind the Scenes of the Stunning Forever Country Music Video Taste of Country Retrieved 21 September 2016 Jesse Knutson September 23 2016 Nashville Shines In CMA s Forever Country Music Video NewsChannel5 Retrieved September 25 2016 Dunkerley Beville September 16 2016 Forever Country Hear 30 Stars Sing Epic Willie Dolly Denver Medley Rolling Stone Retrieved 21 September 2016 Billboard Staff September 20 2016 Watch Forever Country Gather Country s Best amp Brightest for All Star Music Video Billboard Retrieved September 24 2016 Dresdale Andrea April 3 2017 52nd ACM Awards Aldean wins entertainer of the year Miranda sets female vocalist record ABC News Retrieved April 3 2017 ARIA Report Issue 1338 ARIA Top 100 Singles National Library of Australia Retrieved June 19 2017 Canadian Music Top 100 Songs Chart Billboard October 8 2016 Archived from the original on February 13 2018 Retrieved January 29 2020 Canada Country Page 1 Billboard November 12 2016 Archived from the original on January 15 2020 Retrieved January 29 2020 NZ Heatseekers Singles Chart Recorded Music NZ October 3 2016 Retrieved November 5 2016 Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100 Official Charts Company Retrieved October 1 2016 Official Singles Downloads Chart Top 100 23 September 2016 29 September 2016 Official Charts Company Retrieved 2 October 2016 Country Radio Music Chart Billboard October 15 2016 Archived from the original on October 23 2018 Retrieved January 29 2020 Hot Country Songs Year End 2016 Billboard Retrieved December 28 2019 External links EditAnnotated lyrics at Taste of Country Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Forever Country amp oldid 1142489404, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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